Friday, February 05, 2010

ABC Family Makes Schedule Changes, 8 Simple Rules Now Weekdays; John Ritter Book Coming in September Written by Amy Yasbeck

ABC Family has made some last minute schedule changes to start this coming Monday (Feb. 8, 2010). The changes happening to the weekday schedule will have one show return to weekdays, one show leaving weekdays, one show leaving totally for now, and one show expanding. Wow! First up, we get another hour of Full House weekdays in the 12pm hour, replacing What I Like About You. But not to worry fans of What I Like About You, ABC Family likes you fans and will move the show to the better weekday 4pm hour replacing Grounded for Life, which is now totally off the schedule for now. Then in the 6pm hour, 8 Simple Rules returns to weekdays replacing an hour of Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, which will remain airing late nights on some weekends. That's not a big deal since the series already airs on TBS and Disney XD anyway. Good news for 8 Simple Rules, as that series will get to air weekdays again instead of weekend mornings. The final weekday change is an expansion. Whose Line Is It Anyway will now air five days a week in the 12 midnight hour (rather than just once a week) replacing various original series encores and other series.
There will be changes to weekends, too. Starting Saturday, Feb. 13 on Saturdays from 7am-10am will now be That '70s Show replacing two hours of Sabrina the Teenage Witch and an hour of Full House. 8 Simple Rules will remain in the 10am hour on Saturday, Feb. 13, but starting Saturday, Feb. 20, That '70s Show takes this hour as well, expanding to 7am-11am on most Saturdays depending on movie start times. Movies take over the mornings now on most Sundays, but there could be a That '70s Show sighting on Sundays in the 7am hour leading into movies. That '70s Show airs weeknights in the 7pm hour, but most of the time it is preempted due to originals, movies, or various programming, so the weekend morning airings are better. It will continue to air on TeenNick every night as well.

We mentioned a while back that Amy Yasbeck (actress and the widow of John Ritter) is working on a book on the life of her late husband, but now we have more details! With Love and Laughter, John Ritter will be published by Simon & Schuster in September, on the seventh anniversary of Ritter's death from an undiagnosed aortic dissection. I still cannot believe it will be 7 years already next September. That was a horrific day.
"It's about John's take on everything, and what it was like to live with him," says Yasbeck, who met Ritter shooting Problem Child in 1989. "People have seen him as the celebrity, but this will be about the friend, the dad and the husband."
Shortly after his death in 2003, Yasbeck started the John Ritter Foundation to promote awareness about aortic aneurysm and dissection (Johnritterfoundation.org).
Amy continues to raise awareness of aortic dissection, as she recently spoke to ABC13 (KTRK) in Houston on this issue. She is doing a great job and is working with Dr. Milewicz and her UT-Houston team to find the genes that lead to Ritter's death. In these freezers are samples from 10,000 people which have helped them isolate four of the genes that are related to aortic aneurysm. Amy is certainly making a difference in the world by doing this. She will save many lives and needs to be honored for her fine work. The name John Ritter continues to spread a positive message, just as it did when he was alive.
View the video of ABC13's story. Everyone should take a look at this.


Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Monday, March 31

The Neighborhood - "Welcome to the Signature Service Loyalty Rewards Program" (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Malcom receives an unexpected call from USC’s athletic director about a baseball head coach vacancy. Meanwhile, Calvin and Marty start a new signature loyalty rewards program at The Fuse Box.

Poppa's House - "Say Wha?!" (CBS, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Junior’s fundraising effort for his film takes a dramatic turn when he discovers Poppa’s flea market purchase is worth a fortune. Vivica A. Fox guest stars as “Judge SayWha.”

Complete TV Listings


Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of March 31)

Monday, March 31

  • Jennifer Coolidge (2 Broke Girls/Joey) - Watch Jennifer on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
  • Britt Lower (Ghosted/Man Seeking Woman/Big Lake) - Britt appears on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
  • Nathan Lane (Mid-Century Modern/Only Murders in the Building/Modern Family/Charlie Lawrence/Encore! Encore!/One of the Boys) - Nathan stops by Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
  • Maria Bamford (Lady Dynamite/Benched) - Maria is a guest on After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
  • Jay Ellis (Running Point/Insecure/The Game) - Jay talks about Running Point and Freaky Tales on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am and on CBS Mornings Plus in the 9am hour.
  • Sara Gilbert (The Conners/Bad Teacher/The Big Bang Theory/The Class/Roseanne) - Sara chats with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT. She also talks about The Conners on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
  • Michelle Buteau (Survival of the Thickest/Bless the Harts/Enlisted) - Michelle talks about Survival of the Thickest on NBC's Today in the 10am hour and on ABC News Live Prime with Linsey Davis at 7pm.
  • Michael Angarano (Laid/I'm Dying Up Here/Will & Grace) - Michael talks about Sacramento on ABC News Live Prime with Linsey Davis at 7pm.
  • Olivia Munn (Perfect Couples) - Olivia guest co-hosts NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
  • Eva Longoria (Only Murders in the Building/Telenovela) - Eva talks about Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Road Trip on Sherri, so check your local listings.
  • Valerie Bertinelli (Hot in Cleveland/Café Americain/Sydney/One Day at a Time) - Valerie is joining Drew and Ross to hit the headlines in an all-new Drew's News on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.


New on DVD and Blu-ray

I Love Lucy - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) Seinfeld - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray) The Wayans Bros. - The Complete Series Frasier (2023) - Season Two

11/05 - I Love Lucy - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
11/12 - The King of Queens - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) (2024 Release)
11/19 - SpongeBob SquarePants - The Complete Fourteenth Season
11/26 - Looney Tunes Collector's Choice - Volume 4 (Blu-ray)
12/03 - Angel (1960-1961) - The Complete Series, Volume 1
12/17 - Seinfeld - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) (4K UHD)
01/28 - Wait Till Your Father Gets Home - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
02/04 - Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray)
02/04 - The Wayans Bros. - The Complete Series
03/11 - Frasier (2023) - Season Two
04/01 - Abbott Elementary - The Complete Third Season

More Recent and Upcoming TV DVD and Blu-ray Releases / TV Shows on DVD, Blu-ray and Prime Video / DVD Reviews Archive


Recent SitcomsOnline.com News Blog Posts

03/31 - Prime Video's Dance-World Comedy Étoile; Netflix's Tom Segura Dark Comedy Bad Thoughts
03/30 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of March 31, 2025)
03/29 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Netflix Gives Pilot Order to A Different World Sequel; Malcolm in the Middle Reboot Recasts Role of Dewey
03/28 - Pat Sajak's Final Spin on Wheel and Return of Jeopardy! Masters; Remembering George Foreman and Wings Hauser
03/27 - IFC Renews SisterS for Season 2; Netflix Orders Live-Action Scooby-Doo Series
03/26 - Hulu Spring 2025 Slate; The Making of The Americas Special Narrated by Tom Hanks on NBC
03/25 - Deli Boys Now Streaming All Episodes on Hulu; Heartland Season 18 on UP Faith & Family
03/24 - Peacock April Highlights Include Three's Company; Antenna TV's 50 Years on the Beat Barney Miller Anniversary Marathon
03/23 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of March 24, 2025)
03/22 - SitcomsOnline Digest: The Drew Carey Show - The Complete Series* Coming to DVD; American Dad! Moving Back to Fox
03/21 - Big Mouth Final Season; The Four Seasons Premieres in May on Netflix
03/20 - HBO's Brett Goldstein Comedy Special; Disney+ Adds The Simpsons 24/7 Stream
03/19 - Solar Opposites Final Season This Fall; NBC to Move Grosse Pointe Garden Society to Fridays
03/18 - Game Show Network New Shows Launch April 14; NBC Picks Up 3rd Comedy Pilot, While Bobby Moynihan Joins Tracy Morgan Pilot
03/17 - It's True! Ted Lasso Renewed for Season 4; Jane Goodall Returns for Jane Season 3
03/16 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of March 17, 2025)
03/15 - SitcomsOnline Digest: The Neighborhood Renewed for Eighth and Final Season; NBC Picks Up New Cheerleading Comedy
03/14 - NBC Comedy Pilots Wheeling & Dealing; Hulu's Got to Get Out
03/13 - Prime Video Comedy Series Overcompensating Premiere Date; Eric Stonestreet Joins Dexter: Resurrection
03/12 - Hacks Season 4 Premieres April 10; Nickelodeon Orders Wylde Pak
03/11 - The Neighborhood Renewed for Final Season; Max's The Official Big Bang Theory Podcast
03/10 - Netflix Renews Running Point for Season 2; Apple TV+ Trailer for The Studio
03/09 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of March 10, 2025)
03/08 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Tracy Morgan to Star in NBC Pilot from Tina Fey and Robert Carlock; Nobody Wants This Returning for Second Season
03/07 - Trailer for Apple TV+ Comedy Government Cheese; Remembering Saved by the Bell and TV Producer Peter Engel
03/06 - The CW Spring Premiere Dates; Henry Winkler Heads to HISTORY Channel
03/05 - Hacks Brings Out the Stars in Season 4; NBC Orders Pilot with Tracy Morgan
03/04 - Apple TV+ Side Quest Launches March 26; Krysten Ritter Joins Dexter: Resurrection
03/03 - HBO's The Rehearsal Returns April 20; Sharon Horgan Signs Deal for HBO Comedy Series
03/02 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of March 3, 2025)
03/01 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Premiere Date for Mid-Century Modern Set; Roseanne Remastered in High Definition